One Year Ago Today

On this day in 2011 I was heading to work, it was a Friday, and excited that my class had just finished state assessments. We were having our reward which is a movie day. I needed to stop at Wal-Mart and get some snacks for the occasion so I had left the house a little earlier than usual. As I was coming up to Flush Road I saw cars screaming to a halt and then I saw a car go flying off the road and into the ditch. I was in the far left lane and pulled over immediately. I grabbed my phone ready to call 911. As I was getting out a lady yelled and said she was calling right now. Myself and another truck that had pulled over ran across the highway to the car in the ditch. The car that hit it already had a couple of people by it so they were okay. The man and I ran down into the ditch to see what was happening in the car. When we got there we saw the right side completely smashed in and the windows broken. I ran up on the right side to the passenger and could tell that he was passed out. The man who ran with me check on the other passenger. The car was still running and we decided to shut it off in case there was gas leaking and we didn't want a fire. We switched people and the driver was starting to come around. I asked him what his name was and he wasn't responding. I saw backpacks in the backseat and reached for one to see if it had a name on it or in it. I can't find one. During this time another person had arrived to help and she couldn't find a pulse on the passenger. The driver was very concerned for his friend and I went to hold his hand. We couldn't get his door open so I stuck my arm through the back driver's side window to hold his hand so that he would be calm. His friend had no pulse. I talked to him like I would talk to one of my kids. I asked his name, age, where he lived, what he wanted to be when he graduated high school. It seemed like we were there forever by ourselves unable to do anything for these two boys, finally the sounds of sirens started coming. A sheriff showed up and came to talk to us and the driver. I was able to tell him the boy's parents names and phone numbers. Then I just talked to him some more. It became clear that they were going to have to cut him out of the car with the jaws of life. That's when I had to let go of his hand and tell him that I would wait to leave until he was safe in the ambulance. Once I stepped back that's when I realized that my cell phone was ringing. My principal was calling to ask if I was alright. I had no idea how she knew I was here at this accident but she was concerned. I told her that I was okay and that I would be at school once the boy was taken to the ambulance. I found out later on that some co-workers saw me on the side of the highway and could tell it was me from my TR shirt. The EMT's finally got him into the ambulance and then I decided I could go. There was another lady that had been there from the beginning as well and we were both in shock. The EMTs talked to us and made sure we were okay and then asked us if we had any questions about what had happened. We both just wanted to make sure that the boy who had died hadn't suffered and they told us that it had happened instantly due to the impact. I was pretty shaken up when I got in my car but managed to call Mike to let him know and then get to school to finish out the day with my kids. I think it was a great thing because it helped keep me sane in a moment when I could have lost it. A special thank you to everyone who was there for me that day and gave me a shoulder to cry on!